Sapphire Princess - March 7
Today, being the first sea day after the 4 consecutive days in the Hawaiian Islands, was a morning to sleep in, and catch up. At 11 A.M. we had our first CruiseMates get-together (other than dinners) since the third day of the cruise.

Those in the group got to socialize, and catch up to others in the group who they may not have seen since early in the cruise. We also had my own version of a team CruiseMates Treasure Hunt; setting up four person teams of people who are not dining together, nor spouses. Then, teams are given a list of hints to decipher to figure out what items they are in search of, and they then set out to find, and report in with their items in a 45 minute time frame.

It’s just meant to be a fun mixer, with bad prizes for the winning team.
Some teams were very creative in how they got the items they needed, and others were very creative in returning with the wrong items. It was all fun, and made more fun by some of the interpretations of the hints. The percentage of the group that showed up to participate was pretty good, because it was a lovely sunny morning, and we were running head to head against morning bingo.

Today was also the birthday for one of our group, so while we had everyone together, I presented Ron with a birthday gift, and the group sang a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday (or the ship’s version- Hoppy Brisday Two Shoe”.

The afternoon was left for eating, sun tanning, eating, relaxing, napping, and getting prepared for Formal Night.

I can’t write a Virtual Cruise without discussing my favorite topic, and least desirable thing about being on a cruise; Ship Spam.
I’m not talking about the SPAM they almost ended up eating when their was the engine room fire on Carnival Splendor a few months ago. I’m talking about the JUNK mail the cruise lines fill your cabins with during a voyage.

The hypocrisy of the cruise lines when discussing their “environmental programs” is clearly demonstrated by their use of forests full of trees to send daily volumes worth of advertising to the passenger cabins; the thousands of pictures photographers print, but don’t sell. If they want to “save the planet” and “save the oceans” they need to be much more consistent than asking me to use my towels for two days.

Even if the paper is recycled, it’s takes energy to print out all the JUNK; it takes ink to print it; and it takes manpower to deliver it each day. I think I may start a new business selling cabin door stickers online, stating “ to help with my environmental program we DO NOT accept JUNK mail”.

I don’t like to see SPAM in my email at home and I certainly don’t want to see unsolicited mail on my mailbox when I’m on vacation! And I’m sure my cabin stewards don’t appreciate having to haul out garbage cans of it full each night…even if it does mean it helps the ship sell another print at the art auction, or a massage at the Spa.

Dinner service this evening was back to being awkward, which is too bad considering the comparison I drew last night to the restaurant in Maui. Yet, today, during our gathering I spoke to many of our CruiseMates group about their service during the cruise, and the majority raved about it, and some went so far as to say they had the best servers ever.

Tonight, with dessert I ordered a Hot Chocolate. Surprisingly they charge for Hot Chocolate in the dining room. But, not only was I paying for it, it arrived after we all finished dessert, and the staff were busy changing out all the surrounding tableware for the next dinner seating. That was annoying.

I thought perhaps our assistant waiter had to go a long way to get it, so out of curiosity I asked him where he had to go to get the Hot Chocolate. He said he had to get it at the bar. Which bar I asked; he pointed; “in the galley over there”. I asked him if he had to take a bus, or tender over.

My tablemates have not been nearly as critical of the service as I have. A part of that I think is due to the fact we are having a very a great time socializing. However, my 30 years experience in the hospitality industry forces me to look at these things with a more critical eye I suppose. I must say, though the timing of the service may be disjointed and awkward on a few too many nights, I’ve found the taste of the dining room cuisine to be mostly above satisfactory.

After dinner comedian Carlos Oscar was performing in the Explorer’s Lounge, and we chose this show over a vocalist in the Princess Theater. The act began slowly, but did pick up the pace in humor appealing to me as his 45 minute act went on.

Tonight was the third night during the cruise that the casino has been designated a non-smoking area… though it has been allowed during the day, until 6 P.M. each time.

With such a large contingency of elderly people onboard, as well as many with mobility problems, both Mrs. Kuki and I have avoided using the elevators, to allow faster and easier access for those who require them.
Particularly at dinner times the waits for elevators can be very long. We’ve heard stories of people riding the elevators up, just to remain on them to come down.

If you face a similar situation onboard when you cruise, I highly recommend those fit enough to use the stairways do so. It’s a small thing to do, and no one will thank you for it, but they will appreciate it.

On Hilo the volcano is stll active. During our stop there, there was a fair bit of volcanic ash in the air. We didn't sail by the volcano at night when we sailed away, sadly, so didn't get to view the lava flowing into the ocean.... which is terrific when you do get a chance to see it from ships at sea.

Maybe you didn't hear about it on the ship. There's been extraordinary changes in that volcano. It's crown collapsed and fissures have opened up. They've had to close off much of the park around there.

Maybe you didn't hear about it on the ship. There's been extraordinary changes in that volcano. It's crown collapsed and fissures have opened up. They've had to close off much of the park around there.

No, I didn't hear that. We must have just missed that by a day or two.

Some folks who did the heli tour did report some activity from above, shooting some distance into the sky.

Kuki
Thank you for all your posts and pictures.
Do you write the notes in word and then paste into the comment thread. Your pictures I assume are off your flash card and then resized for loading into a virtual online window so you can paste into the comment box.

Sapphire Princess - March 8
This morning during breakfast Mrs. Kuki was looking at the Princess Patters, and noted that this evening was the crew talent show. She wondered out loud when they had time to rehearse.

Now I understand why it took so long to get my Hot Chocolate last night; in the midst of the trip to get it our assistant waiter had gone to rehearsal.

This morning’s breakfast was a delicious, freshly made to order omelet from the Trident Grill (used for hamburgers, hotdogs, and such during the afternoons), accompanied by thinly sliced grilled potatoes, which were also delicious. My wait; about 3 minutes.

Though it’s mentioned in the Princess Patters, not many people have discovered this spot for breakfast, preferring to eat the ready made eggs (sitting on warming plates) from the Horizon Court buffet.

As I sat pool-side enjoying my coffee and breakfast, and checking email on my laptop I was truly amazed at how many motorized scooters and walkers that went by. God bless these people for still having the spirit to travel, and cruise ships for supplying a relatively easy means for them to do so.

I truly mean that, but I tend to let my thoughts roam and entertain me. As a result I began thinking about when they disembark in Los Angeles. It’s going to look a lot like the motorized scooter Indianapolis 500.

On the serious side; I imagine it is going to present some logistical problems for the staff, as they’ll all require elevators and assistance.

The weather this afternoon was excellent, and somewhat unexpected at this time in the cruise, and people were most certainly out soaking up the sunshine.

At 4:30 P.M. we held a CruiseMates get together in the Wheelhouse Bar that was very well attended by the group. We found a winner for our Ugly Aloha Shirt contest, gave answers and awarded a prize to the winning team for our Dinner Table Trivia, which we’d handed out earlier in the cruise for people to work on with the tablemates, and we combined a gift exchange with this event as well. Fun! Fun! Fun!

Tonight’s dinner service was excellent, and giving it some thought, I believe I’ve determined why last night’s was not. The Captain’s Circle cocktail was last night, and on that sailing I believe that would likely mean 98% of passengers were invited. And it’s quite likely that the galley was busy preparing for and dealing with that party, while still trying to service the dining room. That’s not a good excuse, but likely the cause.

It was “Italian Night” in the dining room, and on most cruise lines I’ve found that is the weakest menu of the cruise. Not on Princess. The selection looked wonderful and the food tasted even better. I ate so much, I seriously (if you can believe it) could not eat dessert. The standout tonight in my mind was the veal scaloppini.

The Princess Theater continues to be an issue, with people lining up even before 7:30 for the 8:15 show, and the room being overfull, with people sitting in the aisles and standing well before the show begins. For its purpose the theater is cramped and uncomfortable.

I saw quite an elderly lady standing, so I gave her my seat, and I left the theater. Following the comedy show, was the “crew talent show”, at 10:15 P.M. After the comedy show ended, many people simply stayed in the theater to assure themselves a seat for the next show.

The casino, on the other hand, was fairly quiet so I enjoyed my time with the friendly staff playing blackjack. Casino staff are normally very friendly, because they are not part of any auto-tipping pool. They need to earn their tips separately, and they understand friendliness is the key.

Another day at sea tomorrow, with another CruiseMates get together planned at 4:30 P.M. to give out the prizes in the door decorating contest, and socialize. Someone had requested a question and answer session with me, and 1 other person thought it was a good idea, so we’re going to have a session with the two of them… and anyone else who wants to stick around.

Kuki
Thank you for all your posts and pictures.
Do you write the notes in word and then paste into the comment thread. Your pictures I assume are off your flash card and then resized for loading into a virtual online window so you can paste into the comment box.

Sapphire Princess - March 9
This cruise must be getting close to the end because they delivered our luggage tags for disembarkation today. Wait a second! We’ve still got 2 more days! Oh well, sadly every cruise reaches an end eventually.

Earlier in the cruise passengers did receive a notice offering the EZ Check program for disembarkation. If you’re flying any of 6 airlines involved in the program (I cant list them at the moment, as I tossed out that information sheet along with the SPAM), for a fee of $20 they will take your luggage from the ship, print out your boarding passes for the appropriate airline, and send your luggage on to your final destination within the United States.

I am flying Southwest Airlines, who does not participate in the program, plus I’m a Canadian citizen, so I do not think I’d be eligible, even though I am flying within the United States, for now.

Because of our one stop in Ensenada, Mexico on Friday, for which the sole purpose is to satisfy the legality of the Passenger Services Act, all disembarking passengers will have to clear Customs and Immigration in San Pedro.

The morning was cloudy and a bit cool, but the sun did break through in the afternoon. Many people were taking advantage, trying to sneak in some more work on their tans, others were shopping, playing bingo, etc.

In the afternoon Mrs. Kuki and another person from our group, walked the ship, looking at cabin doors of people in the group who had decorated to enter the CruiseMates door decorating contest. They chose a winner, and brought back pictures of each door that had been decorated.

At 4:30 P.M. we got the group together for our final get together. I brought the laptop so people who were interested could see pictures of those doors which were decorated. Everyone pretty much agreed on the winner, and we awarded very useless prizes to the top four doors.

Afterwards we had a cruise discussion session, and a Q & A session with me. I warned everyone from the beginning, if I didn’t have the answer to the question, I’d be making things up. It was a fun hour, and interesting to hear people’s opinions about different cruise topics, and to hear what questions they had for me. Either people enjoyed it, or they were being very polite to me.

The single most common complaint from the CruiseMates group was the situation with long lines and overcrowding in the Princess Theater, and the Explorer’s Lounge used for the repeat or alternate shows each evening.
The single area which drew the largest rave from our group was the people who had participated in the Chef’s Dinner, offered at a cost of $75 per person. They felt they got absolute value for the money, and a wonderful experience out of it.

Our evening’s dinner service returned to awkward mode. The Head Waiter for our portion of the dining room came by on his nightly walk by, and I explained that though I’m not in rush because I don’t have to head to work right after dinner, I was just curious why some nights the service flowed so well, yet others were a bit dysfunctional.

We were going to be finished dinner in time to avoid the tables being stripped around us with no problem, but the other CruiseMates tables around us were either being served dessert, or waiting for their dessert before our tables entrees were delivered.

Edgar, our Head Waiter, explained the situation to me (or tried to) that tables of 4 and 6 eat faster than tables of 8, and that tables of 8 order more than tables of 4 or 6. I’m not quite sure what that meant.

I assured him I was not trying to complain, but I was just curious about the glitches on some nights. He held firm to his comments, and insisted that if I look around the dining room, all the tables of 8 were the last to finish their meals. MMMM… not a very good system.

I mentioned the night we were still eating dinner when tables around us were being stripped and ready for the next seating. His explanation is that they have to because they have another dinner seating. I did know that! I inquired if that was acceptable, and with no answer to the question, committed to it being better… which really wasn’t what I was looking for at this point. I was not being confrontational, rather I was really just looking for information.

During my sixty + cruises, I never knew that people seated at large tables eat more than those seated at smaller tables. It’s fortunate Princess doesn’t have tables of 12, or those guest might be still eating dinner when the passengers for the next cruise arrived. Forgive my sarcasm, but it really was quite funny.

I could have accepted many reasons for the glitches in dining room service on the nights they did occur, however this one went “over my head” , as the saying goes. I expect our service will likely be much better over the last two nights, but the other tables of 8 may be waiting a long time for their dinners.

A tidbit of information about the television programming; by accident we discovered some nights the U.S. feed of CNN has been available on channel 43. It’s inconsistent, but you can check for it.

Another tidbit; the CruiseMates group has been terrific to dine with, and to cruise with. If the opportunity presents itself I highly recommend jumping onboard one of our group cruises.

My normal routine for writing a Virtual Cruise is to write when I return to the cabin in evening, and then get online to post that day’s story. On this cruise strangely the internet service is more of a struggle late at night. Yet, in the mornings (around 7:30 A.M.) service has been quite good, and almost fast.

At this point in the cruise I’m frankly more worried about waistband than bandwidth.

Just want to butt in here a moment to say my whole party is in complete agreement with the horizon court breakfast for sure. Always cold sometimes to the point of unedible. Such a shame. Ship is beautiful and well kept. I have found all the service outside of the dining room outstanding. Dining room not so much, but not too bad. The anytime dining is not going well as you must make a reservation to eat early. Never experienced this on previous 5 cruises. All in all we are having a great time! Thanks for letting me butt in! Cindy

Just want to butt in here a moment to say my whole party is in complete agreement with the horizon court breakfast for sure. Always cold sometimes to the point of unedible. Such a shame. Ship is beautiful and well kept. I have found all the service outside of the dining room outstanding. Dining room not so much, but not too bad. The anytime dining is not going well as you must make a reservation to eat early. Never experienced this on previous 5 cruises. All in all we are having a great time! Thanks for letting me butt in! Cindy

Cindy..
I'm delighted for you to "butt in" (though I'm not sure I would have done it with the ship's slow internet ), but I've been encouraging everyone in our CruiseMates group to come by the Virtual Cruise when they get home and share their opinions and experiences.

I do agree with you, that outside of the dining room the service has been excellent! Our cabin steward has been excellent; room service has been incredibly fast; bar servers etc. very good, etc etc etc.

The Assistant Group Coordinator, Relenson Noche has provided superb service; sending out all the invites and activities to our events to everyone's cabins. I've had other lines charge me to do this, but here it's all been efficiently and happily taken care of.

that they teach waiters in synchronized service (I think you call it butterfly service?) - all he was saying is that there is more food served per table at a table for 8. I assume he saying the challenge is getting everyone at the table "synchronized.

I have asked the same questions of waiters - "what do you do when three people order salads but not appetizer, two people order appetizers but no soup or salad, four people order soup and salad, one person orders, soup, salad and an appetizer... see?

I have noticed a trend on cruise ships lately to shorten the number of courses on the menu - they put the soups & salads in with the appetizers, for example. They probably did that to save time.

Now - I assume of you wanted to memorize rules (like counting cards in BJ) you could come up with a system to always have a course for everyone at the 8-top, but in reality it seems half the people are eating while the other half are waiting.